Just Her Daddy
by SeveralSunlitDays7
Summary: Lily didn't understand why Albus always said their dad was a Hero. Her dad was Harry, who kissed her forehead and tucked her in every night and tickled her mum when she was in a bad mood. He chased away her monsters, but did he have some of his own? Oneshot


So, by my imagining, Lily is about 8 years old, therefore Albus is 10 and James is 11.

* * *

Lily Potter awoke with a start. She didn't know what had caused her to suddenly wake up, but now she lay there in the darkness of her room, staring at the glittering stars on the ceiling.

Wait.

Was that a noise?

She strained to hear, her body frozen against her sheets, her heart thumping. Was it a scary noise?

There it was again – it was a low sound, like a wail. Not scary. Something that reminded her of the time when her Big Brother James had locked her in the attic at the Burrow, alone with the strange ghoul with red hair and grey skin covered in large boils, who often moaned (and clanked with pipes) when he thought it was getting too quiet below.

Another wail – but this time it cut off, silenced.

Which, naturally, drew her attention. Exhaling in determination, Lily peeled off the covers of her bed and clambered out, careful not to make a sound. She buried her toy Catty the Kneazle back under her blankets and checked the mirror on the wall opposite her bed. She had often looked in it when she was younger, because the angle reflected through her doorway to the hallway outside her bedroom, and she could always see the door to her parents' room. Now though, she was at the wrong angle to see anything beyond her slightly open door.

Pausing outside her room, she stopped to consider where the sound might have come from. Downstairs? No, it had sounded much closer. She hoped it wasn't a banshee or anything nasty like the creatures James had told her about in a letter from Hogwarts, but everyone said she had inherited her Mummy's stubbornness, and she would most definitely find out what had made such a pained noise.

A muffled sound drifted from her parents' bedroom, and Lily snuck closer, careful to avoid that one creaky floorboard. The door was slightly cracked open, and there was faint amber light shining from within.

Through the gap, she could see her Mum and Dad awake, the covers abandoned and wrapped partway down their legs. They were hugging, and it didn't seem like a very happy hug. Rather, assessed Lily, Mum was sitting in an upright position, her arms tightly wrapped around Dad's shoulders and head, her fingers woven tightly in his sweaty hair. They were rocking slightly, back and forth, and Lily could hear her Mum whispering comforting words. The familiarity of them drifted back to her; the words her Mum whispered after she had a nightmare.

With a start, Lily realised her Dad was crying, his face damp and eyes clenched shut. His legs moved with constant energy beneath the blankets, as if he couldn't stand still, trying to escape.

"Ginny, they died, they all died!" he was repeating in a strangled, broken voice, as his wife shushed him softly.

Lily watched with rapt attention, aware that she was intruding upon something unique and tragic, as well as something she should never, ever reveal.

"Shh, love, it's alright... open your eyes..." her Mum was murmuring softly, sweeping a hand through her husband's matted hair.

Lily watched as her Daddy eventually opened his eyes, glazed and unfocused, darting wildly around the room, even though she knew he couldn't see much more than fuzz without his glasses.

His frantic muttering slowly calmed under the soothing ministrations of his wife. They never stopped their gentle swaying, as her Mum lulled her Dad back to sleep. Lily must have been hovering just outside their door for ten minutes, watching, until eventually Harry was breathing deeply, eyes closed. Ginny dragged a thumb softly across his cheek, collecting the damp. He was still wrapped in her arms, and to Lily, it looked like her Mum would never let go.

She turned to leave.

"Lily," came a quiet call from within, loud enough that she could almost pretend she'd never heard it. Shame stole across her face before she meekly pushed the door open enough to fit her head and part of her body through.

Her Mum looked at her fondly, her eyes crinkling in that way that Lily loved. She looked exhausted, and Lily wondered how long she had been awake, comforting or worrying.

"Did Daddy have a nightmare?" she asked softly.

Her Mum nodded, absently stroking her fingers gently along her Dad's forehead.

"You know how Dad's an Auror?"

Lily nodded, wide eyed.

"Sometimes – sometimes he sees more than he wants to, and sometimes he can't forget."

She stared at her Mum, in consternation. She didn't want to have nightmares when she was a grown-up. She fervently hoped to never see any horrible things.

"Is that how you got so good at scaring away our nightmares?" whispered Lily, licking suddenly dry lips.

Her Mum nodded sadly, eyes drifting to her husband. "Please, Lily, don't mention this to your brothers."

"Yes Mummy," murmured Lily. She pulled the door almost-closed, and made her way back to her room.

For a long time, she lay in bed, thinking. She knew that her Daddy battled evil witches and wizards as an Auror, and she knew he had been in a war, as had all the grown-ups she knew, because her not-actually-brother Big Brother Teddy had mentioned it once, and because on her cousin Victoire's birthday, everyone was always sad and they always got up really early and lit candles at Hogwarts.

Looking again in the dark mirror, she could see that there was still a soft glow emanating from under her parents' door, and Lily had a feeling that the light would be on for the rest of the night.

Satisfied that her Dad would be safe until morning, she rolled over to face her window. She didn't know what her big brother Albus meant when he said Daddy was a super hero.

He was just her Daddy.

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So... opinions?


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